Roger Bresnahan; 18th on the list, but #1 in safety![]()
Roger Bresnahan; 18th on the list, but #1 in safety![]()
Left field:
- Ted Williams
- Stan Musial
- Rickey Henderson
- Ed Delahanty
- Carl Yastrzemski
- Tim Raines
- Jesse Burkett
- Al Simmons
- Fred Clarke
- Billy Williams
- Monte Irvin
- Willie Stargell
- Sherry Magee
- Charlie Keller
- Jimmy Sheckard
- Goose Goslin
- Zack Wheat
- Joe Kelley
- Minnie Minoso
- Joe Medwick
- Charley Jones
- Ralph Kiner
- Harry Stovey
pretty solid LF list. I wonder who is going to be up in arms about Raines being so high.
Raines is REALLY that good, and it's a real shame that he's being royally snubbed by the BBWAA.
When the HoM did their rankings, Raines placed 5th, behind Teddy Ballgame, Stan the Man, Delahanty, and Yaz (Rickey had yet to be inducted but would've surely placed 3rd). 16 voters placed him either 4th or 5th. A total of 6 voters placed him at 7, 8, or 9...the 9 being the lowest he was placed.
It's plenty of reasons. Rickey's one of them. Another is that he didn't reach any "important" milestones, like 3,000 hits (nevermind the fact that he reached base more than Tony Gwynn did!). Also, people forget how great he was at his peak. In the 1980's, he was the best leadoff hitter in the NL, and neck and neck with Henderson. Henderson, obviously, sustained that production longer, while Raines settled into a more of a support role, putting the image of the great Raines at his peak in the back of people's minds. A lot of how the "view" of a player is is shaped by the shape of a player's career. Had Raines peaked in his early 30's instead of early 20's, and played as a roleplayer through his 20's, he might be getting more support simply because the greatness is more fresh in peoples' minds. There's also the fact that he peaked in Montreal and thus didn't get as much exposure as he would've had he peaked elsewhere.
You know, I find it really funny, that the people that scoff at "statheads" for "waiting for the 3 run homer", and not "appreciating the little things", and not appreciating "hustle", and all that crap...are the same people that think Jim Rice is a Hall of Famer and Tim Raines isn't. That part baffles me.
Center field:
- Ty Cobb
- Willie Mays
- Tris Speaker
- Mickey Mantle
- Oscar Charleston
- Joe DiMaggio
- Turkey Stearnes
- Cristobal Torriente
- Billy Hamilton
- Jim O'Rourke
- Paul Hines
- Duke Snider
- Larry Doby
- George Gore
- Richie Ashburn
- Pete Hill
- Alejandro Oms
- Max Carey
- Jimmy Wynn
- Earl Averill
- Lip Pike
- Pete Browning
- Andre Dawson
- Willard Brown
- Edd Roush
- Cool Papa Bell